Fear Of A Black Planet

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I'm a writer and performer and I rant about art, culture, politics and everything that annoys me. Which is a lot.

James Black

  • May 4, 2020 LATEST EPISODE
  • monthly NEW EPISODES
  • 60 EPISODES


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Latest episodes from Fear Of A Black Planet

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep155 - Freedom is not optional

Play Episode Listen Later May 4, 2020


This week I talk about: The dispiriting nature of the lockdownThe disputed science around the Covid-19 threatLord Sumption’s piece in the Mail On SundayWhy Liberty is not an optional extraFreedom, fulfilment and citizenshipWill the lockdown change our views on the social contract? Music and art during the lockdownShutting down a string quartetScepticism versus ‘truther’ conspiracies

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep154 - Red Pill and Propaganda

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 20, 2020


This week I talk about: Liberty, citizenship and flourishingOwning my basic white guy-nessHumanism and civil libertiesNihilism and wokenessHuman nature and grand statementsMy problems with the red pill movementGood Trump/Bad Trump reflectionsPropaganda everywhere

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep153 - Coronavirus and Aldous Huxley

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 13, 2020


This week I talk about:Why I have had a break in podcastsWatching the UK become a ‘command society’Democratic audit and hysteriaHow Fear Works by Frank Furedi (book)Hysteria and public consentPeter Hitchens contra mundumAldous Huxley on propaganda and hysteriaVigilance in moments of social weaknessThe hatred of dissentFake dissent and the mainstream mediaA wee song to end off on

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep130 - Bill Burr, Handmaid’s Tale and picking your battles

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2019


This week I talk about:Avoiding reactive Culture War clashesPresenting your own world view robustlyPicking your battlesFeminism and Handmaid’s Tale hysteriaTrue gender oppression in Islamic dictatorshipsBill Burr’s new specialPolitical correctness and the woke blackoutPassive aggressive woke tactics

Fear of A Black Planet - Ep129 - Tulsi Gabbard, alarmist media and individuality

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2019


This week I talk about:My recent gig Good songwriters vs showoff musosSome interesting songsCultivating individualityMill, Wilde and eccentricityTulsi Gabbard (hot) and free speechIdentity politics and alarmist mediaThe real enemy is not Trump or Boris

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep128 - The beginning of the end for woke

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2019


This week I talk about:Dave Chappelle’s new specialSpeaking truth to powerHow the woke types became a new aristocracy The loss of religionDivided times and wokenessDouglas Murray on mob outrageThe moral vacuum and ideology

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep127 - Elvis, personhood and sneering hipsters

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2019


This week I talk about:Bank holiday bohemianismCreative routinesIntroverts and extrovertsPersonhood and relationshipsThe modern tendency to undermineElvis and perfect imperfection

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep126 - Ancient history and the EU

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2019


This week I talk about:My weekend in BradfordProvincial architectureA run-in with a train attendantFinding some old books from uniThe Delian League of ancient GreeceThe Athenian ‘Empire” and the EUPlans for more musicForthcoming book review

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep125 - Art and anxiety

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 24, 2019


This week I talk about:Different creative processesThe chaos of the artistic lifeAnxiety and fearJordan Peterson on fear and sufferingThe role of art and belief systemsChaos, order and being in the zone

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep124 - The dangers of ideology

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 21, 2019


This week I talk about: More Beatles geeking outJordan Peterson’s impact on meIdeological thinking vs authentic thinkingReactive culture and nuanceAmerican shootings and ideological reaction

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep123 - Boris, whining vs dissent and George Harrison

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 11, 2019


This week In talk about:Some good things about BorisWhat Boris should be talking aboutThe difference between whining and true dissentHuman reason and flourishingThe meaning of true liberalismFame, success and the nervous systemGeorge Harrison and spirituality

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep122 - The Beatles Anthology

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 11, 2019


This week I talk about:Conversations with political disagreementsTrump’s rally and the chantsNuance and outrageThe Beatles rabbit holeStrawberry Fields ForeverBeing in a shit bandCliche and originality

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep121 - Marianne & Leonard

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 11, 2019


This week I talk about:Nick Broomfield’s new film on Leonard CohenThe bohemian life and it’s paradoxes Creativity and the museBeauty and catalysts of art Narcissism and artTrump and the establishment

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep120 - Simon Armitage vs Bob Dylan

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 23, 2019


This week I talk about:The definition of poetryThe Faber&Faber policeSimon Armitage on Dylan’s Nobel PrizeThe role of poetry Poetry and human natureSnobbery vs populism The ballad traditionCliches and tropes in song

Fear Of A Black Planet Ep119 - Poetry, heroes and the Gallaghers

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 23, 2019


This week I talk about:The supposed split in poetryElitism vs democratisationStylistic preferences vs genuine critical standardsMarketing and creativityThe importance of heroesMisunderstanding artistsLiam and Noel Gallagher’s festival sets

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep118 - Hong Kong and redefining success

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 23, 2019


This week I talk about: More Leonard CohenCreative successGetting over bitternessBeauty and what it means to be humanHong Kong and democracyHypocrisy of the western left

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep117 - Leonard Cohen and creativity

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2019


This week I talk about:Gratitude to nasty commentsIf you have to ask you’ll never knowTravelling in GreeceHydra - romantic weddingLeonard Cohen in HydraDeath of bohemiaLeonard Cohen on the ‘tyranny of right thinking’

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep116 - Shockwave

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2019


This week I talk about:Liberalism vs identity politicsQuillette’s hatchet on Dave RubinThe basis for human rightsCivilisation and human reasonPlato, Socrates, AristotleLiam Gallagher’s new singleRock n roll humanism

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep115 - I like Trump

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2019


This week I talk about:Trump’s state visitConstantly having to justify your right to an opinionTrump and racism and speculative claimsWhat Trump has done for minoritiesGetting tense during performancesSharing your creativity in these timesFighting back against nihilism and cynicism

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep114 - The Aristocracy Of Spin

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2019


This week I talk about: The EU election resultsDisillusionment in public lifeThe empty, risk aversion in political dialogueIndividuality and communityThe liberal traditionAgency and moralityThe spin doctoring elitesScandal, platitudes and blandness

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep113 - Eurovision and nihilism

Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2019


This week I talk about:The title of this podcastThe old school hip hop attitudeA cultural battering ramSafe and risk-free art todayEurovision and narcissism The enemies of the true liberalRobust humanismDon’t try it on with meI am the counterculture

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep112 - Danny Baker and human rights

Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2019


This week I talk about: Fake freedom rhetoric Liberty and the individualWhat it means to be humanShady pc tacticsFree speech and online harmBohemia and creative environments Raif Badawi and western values

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep111 - Liberalism: a definition

Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2019


This week I talk about:The real meaning of liberalismHow liberalism has been distortedUniversal rights vs identity politicsPluralism vs multiculturalism Defining the human beingAgency, choice and valueEdinburgh and the New Town

Fear of A Black Planet - Ep110 - Dave Rubin

Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2019


This week I talk about:Why Dave Rubin mattersBeing politically exiledGood consensus vs dangerous consensusNuance in political discussionFreedom vs JusticeIdentity politics vs free thinkingSpiritual individuality vs conservative individualism

Fear Of Black Planet - Ep109 - Camille Paglia

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 29, 2019


This week I talk about:Protest vs shrill moaningCounterculture and dissentPaglia’s theory of cultureSexual personae and natureMisrepresenting dissenting viewI Am The Counterculture

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep108 - Criticising political correctness

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 22, 2019


This week I talk about:Humanism vs paternalismMorality as a ‘trojan horse’Jordan Peterson on trans pronounsIndividuality and libertyDissent and first principlesIdeology vs free thinkingMany reason for criticism PC culture

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep107 - Sex and feminism

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 8, 2019


This week I talk about:Political correctness and sexualityWorkplace sexual banterBonding through dirty jokes and innuendoFemale agency and saying noThe line between roughness and violenceThird wave and second wave feminismHealthy sexual relations between genders

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep106 - What is a Renaissance Man?

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 8, 2019


This week I talk about:Progressive paternalismLeonardo da Vinci’s geniusWhat it means to be a Renaissance ManHow Renaissance Humanism is the antidote to ideologyFree Speech and hypocrisyThe right wing double standardYou shoulda killed me last year

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep105 - We need a new bohemianism

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 25, 2019


This week I talk about:The oppressor/oppressed paradigmGeorge Orwell and freedomChurchill and independent thinkingHuman potential and the soulGeorge Monbiot and the leftPleasure and enslavement

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep104 - Pete Seeger and pastoral dissent

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 18, 2019


This week I talk about:The collapse of valuesLiberal dissent vs destructive culture warsRomanticism and the role of the artistDionysus and ApolloPete Seeger’s conservative socialismCareerism vs ambitionFake bohemianism

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep103 - The Great War

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 11, 2019


This week I talk about:How Trump, Brexit and the culture wars are a distraction The real battle of our time is psychologicalSneering hipsters and piddling technocratsRomanticism and western cultureThe war on the human psycheThe realm of being, ands scientific methodEnthusiasm and the unknownMy latest book review about Socrates

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep102 - Killing rock n roll

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 4, 2019


This week I talk about:Bob Dylan and the death of rock n rollHow the counterculture becomes the establishmentFetishisation and consumerismProtecting the soulRomanticism and the sensesWhat happened to KerouacBeing tough without becoming bitter

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep101 - In Defence of Bill Hicks

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 4, 2019


This week I talk about:Olivia Colman’s Oscar’s speechHow Hollywood crushes individualsBill Hicks and politicsHow my lefty views have evolvedConsensus and orthodoxyHick’s views on corporate music and yuppies‘Reassessing’ people’s reputationsStupid Guardian establishment morons

Fear of A Black Planet - Ep100 - Self-validation

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 18, 2019


Great episode of Marie Forleo and Steven Pressfield, definitely recommend. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZToRdS2HRc&t=540sMy ideas of self-validation:You can totally validate yourselfOnly approximate, through rituals, affirmations, making sure you cultivate your imagination and your strengths 2. The buck stops with youNot being ignorant, always be open; but you have the final sayIt’s you who takes the responsibility for your failures, so it’s you who decides if something is good or not. Only listen to people who see importance of what you are trying to do. If they don’t, don’t share and don’t listen. This is going to be a small number! 3. Success is doing the art for its own sake, it’s own rewardMinimise what is not rewarding. Only do what is absolutely necessary, but everything else should be that which is its own reward. You can’t reach perfection. The test is whether it gives you a job well done. The days where you gave it your best shot, and you feel the satisfaction in that

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep99 - Silliness and the abuse of ideas

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 18, 2019


This week I talk about: A realisation about my creative process The imagination and silliness Free speech and privilege How bad ideas can only be combated through free speech How all good ideas can be abused

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep98 - Protect yourself

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2019


This week I talk about:Turning 38Why I left news reportingMoving to LondonFollowing your creative instinctsHow nothing’s black and whiteListening to the inner call

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep97 - Kierkegaard

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 28, 2019


This week I talk about:My recent essay on KierkegaardThe importance of individualitySubjectivity and materialismHegel and the StateThe irreducibility of being a personAbraham and IsaacFaith and paradox and political correctness

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep96 - Martin Luther King and Robert Burns

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 21, 2019


This week I talk about:The culture war over MLK’s legacyA great article by Coleman HughesChristianity and MLKThe universality of the civil rights messageHow identity politics contravenes civil rightsRobert Burns’s political message

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep95 - The Doors are not pretentious

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 14, 2019


This week I talk about:My rediscovery of The DoorsHow Jim Morrison is a bigger influence on me than DylanThe artist as criticThe Doors Live in DetroitUncompromising voicesHow PC culture is the enemy of art

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep94 - The enemies of the artist

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 7, 2019


This week I talk about how the culture has become more creative, but the idea of art is barely valuable. The enemies of the artist are:BombardmentNeoliberal values/marketingCynicism - compliance through habitual disdain

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep93 - Who are the REAL elites?

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 31, 2018


This week I talk aboutThe caricature of the old establishmentMeritocracy and classEducation and knowledgeKenan Malik’s column in the ObserverNiall Ferguson on the current challengePropaganda and how to tell the REAL elites from the fake caricatures

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep92 - Narcissism is an overused term

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 24, 2018


This week I talk about:Spirituality and egoThe meaning of ChristmasNarcissism and its overuseAmbition and masculinityLife-deniers and nihilists Charles Dickens and Christmas

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep91 - Christmas and becoming a person

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 23, 2018


This week I talk about:Worshiping worldly powerThe true meaning of Christ’s comingBecoming a fully realised personPolitical correctness as a form of worldly powerDefining oneselfBoarding school and self-objectificationSpiritual vs material power

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep90 - Being misunderstood

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 16, 2018


This week I talk about: What people don’t get about being an artist Jim Morrison’s revolution of rock music Narcissism and creativity Why people traduce your ideas The irreducible nature of being a person Hidden vocations and the world of Reasons Strategies for protecting our creativity

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep89 - Self-validation

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 3, 2018


This week I ramble about:Redefining successHero-worshipBeing precious about your timeEmbracing the irreducible mystery of ourselves

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep88 - Gigs, sneering hipsters and Pacino

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 3, 2018


This week I ramble about:A snotty girl in ShoreditchMy gig on Sunday nightThe Godfather Part 3Creativity and self-protectionModern cities

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep86 - Why individuality matters

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 12, 2018


This week I talk about why individuality matters. I discuss:The synthesis between individuality and the communityIndividuality and empathyIndividuality and human rightsIndividuality and cultureFree speech, creativity and the role of the free spiritMill, Jesus and Elia Kazan

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep85 - Patriarchy, justice and independent minds

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 5, 2018


This week I talk about Jordan Peterson’s interview with Helen Lewis for GQ. I talk about:The degeneration of GQ from its 90s heydayDefinitions of the PatriarchyThe meaning of true rebellionThe importance of individualityWhy free speech matters

Fear of A Black Planet - Ep84 - #MeToo, sexuality and a little adventure

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 29, 2018


This week I ramble about a little midnight adventure I had in London. No great revelation or point to the story, but it was a fun little interlude!I also talk about #MeToo and sexuality:A new video: From Women To Men. It highlights that abuse runs both ways. Many would say that male abuse of women is worse, but that feeds into extremist reactionsSexuality is itself a powerful and destructive form of power. There’s no easy answer, if we want to avoid Victorian puritanism while also avoiding self-destructive compulsions. Here are the original videos I’m talking about:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwKLTVCJn6Qhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6TLvu3l0Ns&t=725s

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep83 - #PeoplesVote, Orwell and rock n roll

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 22, 2018


This week I talk about: 1. The propaganda of the 'People's Vote'.2. How Brexit can only be solved by being specific, not grandstanding.3. The meaning of rock n roll

Fear Of A Black Planet - Ep82 - Meaningful freedom

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 15, 2018


We live in an age of prosperity, but it doesn’t give us what prosperity shouldThere’s a difference between consumerist choice and meaningful choiceWe live in an era of risk aversion, which is not actually virtuous

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